Extremely excited to announce that I am now Director of Policy and Legal Advocacy at CommunicationFIRST! Communication access has been a big part of my work for a decade or more. I'm also thrilled to be working with some of my favorite people and to meet the rest of the CommunicationFIRST team.

Is it a little cringe to write about how the latest viral thing actually teaches valuable lessons about politics? Yes. Did I do it anyway? Absolutely yes, because this time it's totally true. And because I genuinely love KPop Demon Hunters, having had to watch it 10 times already.

The full ruling explaining why NIH grant cuts are illegal came out today. It's just as blistering as the judge's oral remarks. And it uncovers fresh details in DOGE's role orchestrating the cuts — and on the cuts at Columbia. Here are my top highlights from the 103-page ruling. 🧵

Lovely to see @samanticka.bsky.social get some attentio. She has done so much for the #ActuallyAutistic community and she's right: I know plenty of autistic lawyers, both who got diagnosed as kids and those who got diagnosed as adults after law school.

"There’s a stereotype that autistic people are generally drawn to STEM fields & that law is an anomalous profession for us to go into, but in my experience that is not true. I have known & worked with quite a few openly autistic lawyers." @samanticka.bsky.social: www.americanbar.org/groups/diver...

Lovely & informative interview with @samanticka.bsky.social Sam Crane, who has over 15 years of experience in disability law & policy, including senior roles at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) & Quality Trust for Individuals with Disabilities… 1/ www.americanbar.org/groups/diver...

"The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers"

@samanticka.bsky.social's reminder that advocacy can be joyful really resonates with me. "Combine a lot of angry advocates together, and the situation gets even worse. Conflicts can’t de-escalate. People can’t problem-solve and understand each other." sammka.substack.com/p/why-should...

My latest newsletter post takes a bit of a broader view of our task right now: buttondown.com/sbagen/archi...

Our messaging should be along the lines of: "diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (sometimes called DEIA)" Write out the words. Include accessibility (the feds do, and those are the policies directly under attack.)

StopRFKjr.com is a simple link you can send to your friends, family, colleagues that makes it incredibly easy for them to call their U.S. Senators and tell them to oppose the disastrous nomination of RFK Jr to run all federal health programs. Please share StopRFKjr.com as widely as you can

Just sent emails to the superintendent and school principal, asking them to publicly push back on the "Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling" EO. Also found the board meeting schedule. If anyone wants to join me, I'm linking a couple of templates below that helped me write mine.

in case any media wants to have a chat with a former Department of Transportation employee who can speak first-hand to what the disability accommodation practices look like in the Department, I'm here they were not that great even under Buttegieg. the idea of hiring ATCs unfit to perform is lunacy.

I hope you’ll pardon me jumping in. You could also post the audio of ATC diverting 19 flights after the collision with cool, calm precision. archive.liveatc.net/kdca/KDCA1-T...

RFK Jr. isn’t just pushing anti-vaccine rhetoric—he’s cashing in on it. Sen. Kaine revealed he receives contingency fees from Gardasil lawsuits. He has a financial stake in undermining vaccines. #StopRFK

If you want to know why so many people are worried about Gabbard's visit to Bashar al-Assad, read @richardhalljourno.bsky.social and @andrewfeinberg.com. www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...

Another comment on this kind of blame game because it's on the left too. We have no idea what actually happened. Was the air traffic controller ACTUALLY disabled? Was this airport's staffing level ACTUALLY affected at that time by a hiring freeze? Was this preventable by air traffic control at all?

Let's fact check this claim about disability. The language he's citing seems to be taken from federal Schedule A hiring authority, which lets people with disabilities apply to federal jobs outside competitive process. But it doesn't override medical requirements for air traffic controllers

He literally said this yesterday 👇

If you think today's news headlines are horrific, check out this one from 1906. Chilling.

Judge MCCONNELL will *grant* the restraining order, saying the withdrawal of the "hugely ambiguous" OMB order is only a distinction without a difference "based on comments by the president’s press secretary.”

NEW: While some of Trump’s first-week actions are popular, voters oppose a majority of those we tested — including his “Gulf of America” directive, eliminating the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, and ending a policy that helped states enroll residents in Medicaid.

There are a lot of issues our communities care about, and it can be hard to prioritize our work — join us on 1/30 at 4pm ET for Policy Advocacy: What we do and how we do it to learn how to do policy advocacy and set your own priorities!

RFK Jr. says he’ll “make America healthy” but couldn't even explain how Medicaid works. Senator Maggie Hassan calls him out: He gave word salad answers, was uninformed, unprepared, and would follow Trump’s orders—even when they hurt seniors, disabled kids, and veterans. #StopRFK

Federal funding freezes may be paused, but Medicaid is still at risk. Learn more about how the freeze impacts programs like Medicaid Money Follows the Person in our latest @caringacrossgen.bsky.social #MedicaidMinute video. #SaveMedicaid

Senator Ron Wyden is right: RFK Jr. wrote a book claiming people were “misled” into thinking measles is deadly. Now, he’s trying to downplay his role in Samoa. That’s not what the parents say. That’s not what Gov. Josh Green says. It’s time to set the record straight. #StopRFK

There will be more actions in the future, don’t worry. But this is the next step in the process. Tell even the republican congress critters their powers that they fought to have are being stolen out from under them by Trump. Most might not bend, but we don’t need most- we just need a few to stumble.

Actions, but it is an essential part of prepping the field. This election might not have got us the preferable battlefield, but we can make it marginally less disadvantageous by making sure that the metaphorical officers have doubts seeded and footing uncertain.

Please keep in mind that congress critters have to keep track of constituent correspondence. Often that tracking is over simplified, but it is there. Don’t let people think they have overwhelming support. Don’t let them think they are on stable ground. No, this isn’t the beginning and end of your

Check out @autisticadvocacy.bsky.social 's new plain language guide on what you can do to help #SaveMedicaid! Includes explanation of what Medicaid is, why it's important, and SCRIPTS for contacting your legislators!

Want to learn what Medicaid is, how it helps people with disabilities, or how we fought Medicaid cuts in 2017 (and how we can stop them again)? Check out our recording of our webinar, “What is Medicaid and what how can we save it — again?”

I think what we're seeing is, what we'll call, "operational confusion" at CMS. We're seeing the same thing with the likes of HeadStart. I think we're going to see the account problems that are being reported resolved in the near future.

Please, please listen, I am literally begging you: I'm a healthcare lawyer who is alive because of Medicaid. I just came from Hill meetings about Medicaid. I'm very plugged into "the groups" — if you're covered by Medicaid, do not cancel anything medical because of the OMB mess.

Each person has their own strengths in advocacy & activism. You aren’t better or lesser for yours- some do have smaller *individual* impacts than others, but a successful strategy involves a wide range of approaches to a single goal, & some approaches are about numbers not individual impact anyhow.

With Illinois reporting that it can't access its federal #Medicaid funding accounts this morning, reminder that states have a statutory entitlement to their federal Medicaid funding, on top of the fact that freezing federal funding is unconstitutional and also violates the Impoundment Control Act.

Sharing this possible resource for small nonprofits in need of office space! Applications are open now!

I called the office of @schumer.senate.gov to ask him to vote against the confirmation of RFK, Jr. I'm an autistic New Yorker who doesn't appreciate RFK's baseless fearmongering about people like me. I'm a performing arts professional whose career was nearly ended by our last pandemic.

It's ok for it to be too much for one person to take in. It's too much for one person to *do* - there's a lot of people behind all these executive actions. But there's a lot of us too. Pick a few issues you care about and a few things you're good at - and hammer at those.

Today in strikingly manipulated data: headlines today are about Trump's "high" approval rating signaling that voters approve of his actions in office so far That poll was released on 1/21 and doesn't reflect opinions on anything that happened since; other polls have him losing 4 points this week

Call/email your senators NOW to oppose Kennedy"s confirmation. Even if you think they already made up their mind. He's unqualified and deeply anti science. People *will die* if he is confirmed. Take five minutes out of your social media time and do it thanks

The first thing too many people Sacrifice on the altar of fear To ward off cognitive dissonance Seems to be nuance— There are other burnt offerings Acrid on the breeze, But this one turns friends to demons, A simplicity that is doomed to failure.

FDA purges material on clinical trial diversity from its site, showing stakes of Trump DEI ban www.statnews.com/2025/01/23/f... via @statnews.com

Please call your Senators about this. Here’s how (it’s on Patreon but free, you just need to make a free account).

What is the HCBS Settings Rule? How can I find out what rights I have under the HCBS Rule? Find out the answers to these questions and more with our plain language and Easy Read videos!

Our first year of the Teighlor McGee Grassroots Mini Grant Program was extremely competitive. Applicants were innovative and interested in making real change in their communities. Today, we are honored to announce this year's mini grant recipients!

One confusing thing about all sides about this bizarre birthright citizenship argument is they're all about whether people's *parents* were "subject to the jurisdiction of" the United States. The plain text says it's about the people *being born* on US soil so ...